Running away is what Zak Skinner does best, and he’s just done it again, having transferred from NYU to University of Chicago. His fresh start goes south when he accidentally uncovers evidence of an on-campus, organized crime scam involving drugging students, getting them to commit crimes on camera, and blackmailing them to continue under the threat of expulsion. Digging deeper, Zak discovers that the university scam is just the tip of the iceberg, connected to a broader ring of crimes linked to a dark web underworld. Following clues proves too dangerous. They know, they’re watching him. But he’s in too deep now to turn back. Zak is led to a compound within Chicago’s abandoned Steelworker Park, only to discover that he’s being hunted. Following the path toward the truth transforms him from a nerdy academic to a rabid activist hell-bent on exposing the most elaborate and expensive scam on the US economy and its unsuspecting victims. While trying to find a way out alive, Zak discovers there’s something much more personal he’s been running from – his past. And now there’s nowhere to hide.